Jun 27, 2013

Occasionally I feel like I get so busy "planning" ideas for blog posts that I forget just the life updates. The small things. The things I'll want to go back and remember that I was feeling, doing, thinking at this point in life. Thursday's always seem to be the day I want to make lists the most so I bring you: Erin's Life Update/Ramblings/Thoughts!

My manager was out of the office the past two days. That makes for a chaotic environment, but let me tell you… I need the title of assistant manager. That office needs me. Not bragging, just keepin' it real.

I miss this gal's blog… but rumor has it she will be back in action VERY soon! :)

I'm sooooo travel-happy right now. I need a good road trip in my life!

Paying off debt and being on an insanely strict budget is exciting but exhausting too. I can't tell you how many times I reached for that debit card just to realize I had to put it back. This WILL be worth it in the end!

Since I can't shop- I was super grateful for the cute jewelry Sugar Love Boutique sent me. I have gotten so many compliments on these earrings!

I'm married to a supermodel. I mean, seriously!

Sometimes I think I want to be a photographer--- no weddings, just families, senior pictures, babies. I got a taste of a baby photoshoot over the weekend and I kinda' loved it…

2000s pop radio on Pandora is the place to be. Work, home, play…. it wins.

Family/friends should all be required to live within a 90 minute radius. I HATE missing people all the time!!! :(

Jun 25, 2013

If you've stayed up-to-date on Sallie and Perkins with the debt-elimination kick-off, as well as the curveball dodging, you should be on the right track to a debt-free lifestyle. You've hopefully set up an actual budget for you and/or your household and really looked at where that money is going each month. We know you've got more than you think you do. It's just about saving it, instead of spending it! We hope you've started building an emergency fund too. Even if it's a slow process, it's so important.

We've mentioned Mint.com before, but if you're a paper and pen type of gal like Sallie, you might enjoy a book like this as well. We snagged ours on Amazon and track all our bills and spending on here, too. Backup never hurts!

Today we're talking about DR's Step 2 in the process of financial freedom. Step 2 is the big boy. The paying off ALL debt. It's a simple concept- it just takes discipline to really follow through on it.

You'll want to list your debts in order from smallest balance to the largest balance. Interest rates don't matter unless two debts have similar payoffs- then you'd want to pay off the higher interest rate debt first.

Dave's famous "thing" is the Debt Snowball. So much of getting out of debt is just seeing those numbers go down and gaining motivation from it. Once that smallest debt is paid off you now have one less debt on your list! You can take the money you were paying monthly for it, and add it to your next debt. Your monthly payments will stay the same but you'll eventually be "snowballing" them the more you pay off!

Both Sallie & Perkins opened credit cards in college to "get by" while living the dorm life. Big mistakes right there... they both charged more than they should, and it took them a pretty long time to pay that money + interest back. If you can't pay cash, you shouldn't be buying those things!! Luckily, they only have student loans left to pay back, but this method works for everyone's debt situation.

Dave Ramsey always says: "Personal Finance is 20% head knowledge and 80% behavior" and we couldn't agree more! Knocking out the smallest, easiest debts first is all the motivation we've needed to absolutely CRUSH our debt.

And when we say CRUSH, we mean it… just get a load of this guy! He. Means. Business.

So how's your emergency fund looking? Do you have your budget outlined either through a software or on the ole' paper-pencil method?What small choices can you, or will you, make this week to save money and pay off debt?

Jun 24, 2013

Before the craziness of football season starts, I was able to sneak in a vacation day today and enjoy an extra long weekend. Timed up with my sister being in town! Sorry, I'm busy having a blast still this Monday. Don't be too mad at me.

So I'll still recap you on what I've done over the past few days… I'm sure you're on the edge of your seats wanting to know ;)

Friday-- Worst day of work ever. No lie. Things were chaotic from the time I got there until the time I left. By the time I got home all I wanted to do was lounge in sweats, eat junk food and watch Disney movies. And we did just that.

Saturday- It was official "Wreak Havoc on our Home" day for Jared and I. We're a little late, but we did some serious Spring/Summer cleaning of the house. Scrubbing floors, wiping down baseboards, washing doors/windows, detailing our kitchen…. all that 'crap' that just needs done. Pretty sure our house is cleaner than when we moved in! Not to mention the 6+ loads of laundry we got done AND the amazing work Jared did to our yard.

That night may have also ended with Disney movies, junk food and some party crafting. After a day like that, we were wiped out.

Sunday- We partied hard and spent time with friends and family :) No other explanation needed!

This is my stinkin cutie pants flower girl… hard to believe she is SEVEN now!

So I hope you all enjoyed your weekend and aren't having too rough of a Monday. I can't wait to hear what you've been up to! :)

Jun 21, 2013

Happppy Friday and first day of summer!! Woooo!! If that doesn't make you feel unmotivated at your office job today, I don't know what will?! ;)

I just discovered the 'Feeling Good Friday' link-up and it's timing could not be more perfect. Just this morning my sista-in-law and I were just saying we were HAPPY and feeling gooooood. Sure, this week draggedddd on and sure I stayed up entirely too late watching entirely too much NBA but somehow we've made it and we're still smiling!

I'm smiling about two entire days with no plans! Tonight Jared and I will probably be 86-years-old again. Who knows? We might even throw some laundry in the mix.. don't underestimate us! ;)

And tomorrow- we have an entire Saturday to finally just take care of some stuff around the house. Yardwork, little mini-projects we've been putting off forever.... just a day to catch up and make our house a little more enjoyable to be at. Because let's face it -when you're not spending money you're going to be around the house a lot more!

I'm also super pumped my sister will be here late tomorrow night and that I get to hang with her all day Sunday AND Monday. Yup, taking a vacay day on Monday! This will probably be the last time we'll see them until Christmas (wah!!) so I want to soak in as much time with them as we can.

I'll keep this short and sweet today. Since I have no pictures to share (bad blogger!) I figured I've lost about half of you by now anyway! ;) What are you feeling good about today?!

Jun 20, 2013

Thoughts on Thursday. Or, Thumbs Up on Thursday. I don't know.... it's one of those days where I'm just winging it here on the blog. Lots of jumbled up thoughts swirling around, trying to make sense of them all. I think by Thursday's every week my brain is just a wreck.... hence the bullet pointed life-update you are about to receive ;)

Dance parties to Katy Perry make everything better whether you're in the office, at home, your car, anywhere really. Did you know I saw her in concert once? Best show ever!!

Can the NBA just be over already? I've had my share of it and I hope LeFlop goes down tonight. But really, let's just bring on the football season. Seriously people, it's 7 weeks from the Bengals first game. Which means training camp is next month.... which means MY team is being featured on Hard Knocks via HBO. #Superbowlbound #hashtagsonblogs ;)

Life is way too short to take yourself too seriously. So lighten up! :) Jared and I are mega-goofballs, which if you've been here more than twice you probably already know. I wouldn't have it any other way!! Being married to your best friend and other half means you can make any life situation fun.

My sister and brother-in-law will be here this weekend, yay!!! We have lots of fun stuff planned and I'm so looking forward to their visit. I hope you all will still keep them in their prayers as their journey continues!

Lastly, I'd love to have you as a design client! Blogs are my specialty, and I'm probably one of the least expensive options out there. Check out my design page and shoot me an email if you're interested. Also- I design anything! Wedding programs, invitations, birthday invites, business logos/watermarks.... you name it, I'm game!

Jun 19, 2013

Let me just say I was THRILLED when a bunch of you commented on a recent Instagram pic of mine saying you loved my shirt. I'm terrible with clothes- really, I am. I just never know what to pick out and I end up wearing the same ole' stuff day after day, week after week. So I was really excited when Jill over at Sugar Love Boutique offered to send me a few pieces to review and then also offer some specials for my awesome readers!

Ohhh, I'm so not a fashion blogger. Focus on the clothes, people!!

The Lucy Chevron top is basically the favorite item in my closet now. I got so many compliments on it and I love all the fun, bright colors. Jill sent me a medium and it fits perfectly! Psst... it's also on sale right now for only $21- don't pass it up!

I also got a chance to rock this gorgeous dress. The Sage dress is so fun and flowy-- and Jared really liked it, win-win! ;) It's definitely the perfect summer dress and I know I'll be wearing it a lot with all the parties and weddings we have coming up!

Now here comes the good part. Jill is offering 30% off for all my readers!! Her prices are already great, so you will score some awesome deals with that discount. Just use promo code 'lovefunfootball' to receive the discount between now and 6/24/13.

Jun 18, 2013

An update on Sallie & Perkins process? They are now a week and half cable-free and doing great. They also haven't set foot into a restaurant except for a Father's Day dinner celebration this past Sunday. They write down each penny they spend on gas and groceries and other than that? They aren't spending money!!

Now that they're in a place of just student loans, they have easily been able to start looking at the Dave Ramsey principles and apply them to their own debt situation. Again, you don't have to buy Dave's books or products (We didn't!) but his website alone gives tons of helpful information and can really put things into perspective for you. Getting out of debt is more simple than you think.... it's just about starting off in the right direction.

Dave basically breaks down his methods into 7 baby steps. Don't worry, Sallie & Perkins are only on Step 2 and will be here for awhile. Step 1 is just building an emergency fund of $1,000. Keep it in your separate savings account and don't touch it. It's only for emergencies. One pricey car repair and you'd be just about wiped out of that. Trust us, we know!

The point is, you'll have the money there and won't be tempted to max out a credit card whenever life throws you a curveball. Sallie and Perkins have been thrown curveballs in the past, but weren't financially prepared to handle them properly and they just didn't know why. They made decent money, it wasn't like they were living lavishly… so where was all that money going each month??? With helpful free tools out there like Mint.com, Sallie and Perkins were shocked to find out…

OH. Those shoes that were "on clearance!" or that energy drink during a long day at work, or the temptation that is 2-day shipping via Amazon prime. Now that Sallie and Perkins were tracking their spending, they were able to easily put away $1,000 for their emergency fund and get a better look at their financial situation. It gave them the confidence to pay larger chunks of money on their debt because they now had their cushion to hit the curveballs of life.

Have you started your emergency fund yet? What small choices can you, or will you, make this week to save money and pay off debt? Be sure to stop in next week as Sallie and Perkins dive into Step 2!

Jun 17, 2013

This weekend was seriously gone in the blink of an eye it seems!! It was a weekend where we definitely overscheduled ourselves, but it was worth it for a lot of family/friend time!

Friday Jared and I acted like we were 86 years old by staying in and doing a puzzle, listening to music and then watching some Netflix with a bowl of popcorn.

It was just what I needed though. Last week at work had been a long one and I knew we'd be going nonstop Saturday and Sunday.

Saturday we had to get some Father's Day and birthday gifts done so we headed out around lunchtime. It was as GORGEOUS day out!!

The beautiful weather made the hour drive out to some friend's house not too bad! Good music and cruising with your best friend? That's what summer is all about! We got to go to Landon's 1st birthday party which was a lot of fun. His parents are awesome and we don't see them nearly enough so it was a good time catching up and celebrating their little guy!

Jun 16, 2013

If you haven’t heard ofCardstorebefore, it’s a pretty cool service that lets you choose a card and personalize it however you’d like all with just a few clicks. Cardstore will even mail it out for you which is a nice little added bonus.The custom birthday cards and the photo cards are some of the favorites and most popular, but there are tons of designs for every occasion imaginable available! Which is why I chose to make a customized card for the best dad in the world! Today IS Father's Day, after all ;)The Cardstore photo cards were really cute, but I just couldn't quite decide what pictures I would want to use, so I chose a light-hearted card instead. I will say- although I didn't use pictures, I loved that you could link right to your Facebook and choose the photos from there if you wanted. Definitely an easy, seamless process!

I plan to deliver my card in person, but if you wanted, they'll mail it for you- you JUST pay for the postage stamp. No shipping or handling fees or anything like that. Simple, right? Also- you might think the cards themselves are too pricey and more than you'd spend? WRONG. My card was $3.49! You'd easily spend that at a Hallmark, CVS, Target or anywhere else you'd pick up a card. Convenient and affordable, Cardstore basically rocks!I'll definitely be using their services again. It's especially convenient if you're like me and tend to forget cards until last minute and/or have family that lives out of town and you want to ensure your card's there on time!*All opinions are my own. I was provided one free card in exchange for a review. No other compensation was exchanged.

Jun 15, 2013

You know what is one of the coolest things ever in the blog world? No, no… not winning giveaways. Although that is pretty high up there, too! It's when you ask someone to guest post for you…. and somehow, it's like you could have written it yourself. No, seriously…. Sarah from VTIM is stopping in today to share some of my bloggy space and I 10000% agree with everything she said. So without further adieu:

1. Disney Movies: At age 5 Disney movies were the best. I laughed at all the funny things the characters did to entertain me with their innocent dialogue. At 25, that innocent dialogue transforms into a story that is so relatable and yanks at my heartstrings.

What I thought was the funniest thing ever at 5…

Is now what I cry uncontrollably at, at 25...

2. Cry On Mom's Shoulder: Sure we may have boyfriends, fiancés, husbands... but nothing is more soothing than calling up mom and just crying about the problem. Guys just don't understand how our minds work, but mom always does, and always will.

3. Sleepovers: At age 5 we used to stay up with our girlfriends playing truth or dare, pretty pretty princess and giggling our way through the night. At 25 our sleepovers are every night thanks to roommates! Instead of truth or dare we simply refer to it as juicy gossip, engagement rings replaced pretty pretty princess and the giggles are caused by an overload of cupcakes!

4. Lunchables: Best lunch EVER! I remember I would (still) only use a little bit of the sauce and cheese on the first two pizzas and then make a super mega pizza for the third pizza! Plus, they always came with Capri Sun! An adult needed to poke that hole for you because it seemed easier solving Pi than attempting to get the straw into that hole! But today at 25 I still love these, and with only 300 calories they are the perfect size for a treat that feels like cheating, but it's not!

5. Jumping in Rain Puddles: We have more fun now because we have an extra set of feet to play with us...